There is a prevailing impression here that enemy submarines are being withdrawn from the Mediterranean to be used to oppose the landing of United States troops in Europe.2 10019

Daniels,

Sec. Navy.

Source Note: Cy, DNA, RG45, Entry 517.

Footnote 1: American Legation United States Naval Attaché.

Footnote 2: Sims wrote a lengthy letter to Daniels on 20 June detailing his views on the submarine threat. He does not make mention of German submarines being diverted from the Mediterranean specifically, although he does emphasize the dire situation in the Atlantic waters off Europe. Significantly, Sims emphatically states his belief that anti-submarine efforts should focus on protecting shipping, rather than troop transports, a long-standing debate between Sims and his superiors in Washington throughout the war. See: Sims to Daniels, 20 June 1917. Still, Crisis at Sea, 360-361.